Many of you have probably heard of the Shabby Apple online dress shop and have entered one of their online giveaways. I’ve hosted two giveaways from them in years past, myself. So when they contacted me to review a dress, I decided it would be fun to do a review of one of their dresses from a seamstress’s point of view. And who doesn’t love to get a free dress?
Also, we were headed to the races at Del Mar with my mom, a racing fan, and it was a great excuse to take photos of the dress there! We had a fun day at the Del Mar races.
We didn’t win, but I did manage to sneak Lily into the Paddock and the Turf club, where we dined on white tablecloths and pretended we were big shots. 
It definitely helped to be dressed the part! I chose this black lace dress with a neck flounce from Shabby Apple to wear. Unfortunately, i just checked their site and this particular dress is no longer available but there are some other similar ones. I really love this black and white polka dot number.
It was fully lined with a lightweight stretch woven cotton, yet surprisingly, it wasn’t too hot in the summer heat. Honestly, I’ve been so disappointed with ready to wear dresses lately, so I wasn’t expecting the dress to be very well made. I’m at an age when I can remember when things were much better made than they are now, so I was not expecting to be impressed by Shabby Apple since their dresses are made in China. But apparently, they must have found a factory that doesn’t cut any corners, since the dress was very well made. The cotton lace is a nice substantial weight, and the lining is a quality cotton poplin with just a hint of stretch. The invisible zipper seems sturdy and the size 6 I asked for fit perfectly. Although the hems are finished by machine stitching, it’s not noticeable on the lace. The rest of the exposed seams are finished by a serger. This is a 100 dollar dress so I wasn’t expecting couture. It seems to be well made for the money.
The company also gives micro loans to women around the world. My dress came with a tag introducing the recipient on one of these loans, Govindammal, a widow and bamboo weaver from India.
I planned on wearing a big floppy hat with really high heels, but opted for being more comfortable at the last minute. I wish I had worn the hat, though… it was pretty over the top!
The Del Mar races are a must see, if you ever happen to be in the San Diego area in August. I love any excuse to dress up, and bemoan how the world has gotten so shlumpy and casual in their dressing ways. Yoga pants and flip flops to dinner, anyone? No, thank you. It was nice to visit a place that actually had a dress code. Honestly, most men look a whole lot more handsome in a dress coat. Don’t they?
Now that’s what I call a Shirley Temple!
So on to some more details about my Shabby Apple dress….
